Integrity of Ways
by ChaosD-X
Summary: Where Hakkai wants to complete his duty, and Sanzo wants some audience.


_ Standard disclaimer applies._

**±Integrity of Ways±**

_by ChaosD _

'..And then her father t'rned up w'th a gun, but I..' 

'..But you didn't die.'

'Argh, bouzu, you're one crappy l'stener. You think you know't all..'

Yawning, Gojyo removed his arm from over Sanzo's shoulders, but totally missed in the attempt to grab his glass. Another attempt proved to be more successful, but apparently, exhausting: his head gently hit the table and over the matter of seconds grumble considering religious institution on the whole and his, Gojyo's, cursed fate in particular, turned into snores.

Hakkai lifted his eyes at the sound, expertly checked everyone's state and then checked the level of liquid in his own cup. And the turn-in process began unrolling.

He leaned over slumbering Goku. 'Help me. Tomorrow, I'll make sure you have extra time for breakfast.' The trick was to jump out of the way of the reflexes springing into action.

Each grabbing a hold of either end of Gojyo, they carried the body toward the stairs. By the end of the first flight Goku was yawning again, so sweetly that by the second one both of them were yawning concurrently, through quiet giggles.

Gojyo's astonishing quality was to sleep through it all, including a rather offhand meeting with the bed.

They looked back down the stairs and Goku couldn't contain a sigh.

'Go to bed. I'll get him.'

Goku gave him a quiet growl on the lines of _won't blame you to abandon him there_. 'Good night, Hakkai.'

Leaving him to fumble with his key, Hakkai ambled back to the common room.

One of his advantages on the task, Hakkai thought as he offered a hand to the spaced-out Sanzo, moving a sake bottle out of his reach with the other, was that when Gojyo's defensive mechanism kicked him out to sleep, Sanzo usually was past his "I can walk by myself" stage. Until that, handling him proved to be a bit tricky, as could be helping Gojyo before he was totally unconscious.

'Humiliating,' declared Sanzo to the universe in general, as they began a climbing attack of the stairs.

Besides, the balance of weight advantage laid with Hakkai and, provided Sanzo's lack of struggle, steering was achievable.

'Don't get drunk, then.' Hakkai frowned at the shards of glass – might've been a lightbulb - they were to step over while his rationality grabbed for the nearest piece of logic.

'I can't, and you – you know it. For there are no gods.'

Despite of what Gojyo thought, the monk did preach. But as his inspiration came somewhere along with inability to choose directions, usually there was no one left to listen. Almost. In fact, Hakkai found it rather amusing, as long as it didn't involve cooking.

'There are no gods,' stated Sanzo. 'All we might have is a bunch of bastards playing absoluteness.'

Hakkai concentrated on reducing the swaying motion they gained as Sanzo began gesturing to express his point.

'…And as I was saying -' Sanzo frowned at the obvious lack of reaction and dug his heels into the wooden planks of the stairs. 'Hakkai. You aren't listening.'

Perhaps he should have ignored the monk and started out with carrying him.

'What about Homura-tachi?' He nudged his counterpart onward.

'What makes them gods? Their powers? Is taking a name of 'god' and breaking everything apart to suit oneself the manifestation of the essence of the living? Wait, it is.' Sanzo cringed. 'But not a thing I will worship, ten or ten thousand years from now. A bit of power here and there and a trait to look down looking around doesn't make anyone a higher being.'

'Oh?' the youkai remarked conversationally, keeping his eyes on their feet. 'I'll make a note of it.'

There were no words spoken for a while, as they measured the last steps up.

'.. And in death… There'll be darkness and nothing else.'

'What do I have to fear with one sun for this world and one for the next?' Hakkai murmured.

'Hmm?' Sanzo's face briefly indicated annoyed confusedness. 'You still aren't listening to me.'

The audience gave him a warmest under the conditions smile. 'I'll pass your greetings to Enma-o, should your theory prove itself wrong.'

A short cough answered, in which a trained ear could suspect laughter.

'Whatever. But – but see, we can always entrust ourselves to them in delivery, Hakkai. Of all those freaky bastards-dubbed-deities I never met one that wasn't set on killing me off.'

'And Kannon-sama?'

Sanzo turned and swayed forward into his field of view, putting a hand against his other shoulder to keep himself upright. When he looked up, the bloodless line of lips was twisted painfully against usual.

'Shall we go and call all the puppeteers gods?'

Hakkai took his wrist and pushed him away gently, reaching for the key in the same downward movement.

'Here's your room. Come on. If you are careful.. oh.'

He caught the monk again halfway to the floor and landed him down on a bed, finishing the dance that led them here. Sigh, nod, retreat.

'You don't believe me,' Sanzo said to a shadow against the vanishing light.

'Why, I like to be optimistic as well. Good night.'

_±owari±_

**Non-obligatory footnotes.**

On the title: _Is not thy fear of God thy confidence, and thy hope the integrity of thy ways?_ (Job, 4:6)

On the buddhist death domain: _Enma-o_ is the closest japanese counterpart of chinese _Yan-lo_ (who should belong in the text along with Guan Yin), chosen to keep to Minekura's Saiyuki naming style.


End file.
